“Domaine Artefact” pays homage to the estates of Southern France and honors the Kumeyaay artifacts once found throughout the property. These Native American artifacts have since been curated and now reside in the World Museum of Natural History in San Bernardino, CA.

In the early 1900’s, the Sgobossi family planted “Vieilles Vignes” or old vines of Ruby Cabernet and Muscat of Alexander vines. These surviving vines can still be found in the low-lying areas of the property, a lasting tribute to some of the original settlers of the region.

Today, Domaine Artefact is a 30-acre estate dedicated to growing Rhône grape varietals as well as vinifying and blending them in traditional yet innovative manners.

The soil on the valley floor is a mixture of clay and loam, while on the South-facing hillsides is a combination of sandy loam and decomposed granite. Our vines have been grafted onto 101-14, 1103P and 420 rootstocks.

Red Varietals

Carignan

Cunoise

Grenache Noir

Petit Syrah

Mourvèdre

Syrah

White Varietals

Where it all begins!

The South Coast AVA in southern California includes all of Orange County and western portions of Riverside and San Diego counties, where coastal influences moderate the warmth of the southern California sun. There are more than 3,000 acres under vine in the appellation, much within the borders of the appellation’s sub-regions, the Temecula and San Pasqual Valley AVAs. Traditionally, Chardonnay dominated the acreage, but the area’s recent battle with Pierce’s disease has forced local wineries and vineyards to focus on more pest-resistant varietals. This is fostering an exciting new age of hardy Rhone, Italian and Iberian grape production.

The South Coast AVA

Meet the winemaker

Mark Robinson discovered his passion for wine over 30 years ago when he was a student living in the bay area. He and his friends would travel to Napa and Sonoma when tasting was “free”. Over the past 20 years he has honed his palate through exploring the great wine regions of the world- visiting many regions in France, Italy, California and Oregon.

Mark and his close knit group of wine aficionados met often and sampled a wide assemblage of premier wines. Mark is no stranger to fermentation and has made small batches of beer and wine through his career.

Mark is “self taught” and has tackled grape selection, planting, vineyard management and winemaking responsibilities at Domaine Artefact since its’ inception. Mark’s background is chemistry and he believes that all great wine begins in the vineyard.

A BANNER YEAR

Harvest 2016

Harvest 2016 set a new record at just over 23 tons at Domaine Artefact. Our Viognier began ripening in earnest early August and by mid month we had harvested over 3.5 tons. Our Grenache offered up 5 tons, Syrah just over 5 tons, Grenache Blanc at 2.5 tons and our Mourvedre, Roussanne and Marsanne at 1, .75 and .5 respectively. Additionally, we purchased 1 ton each of Marsanne, Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Viognier and Syrah. We were putting the last of our Roussanne into the press on October 29th!